I couldn’t name any of her songs, but I enjoyed the halftime show well enough. I’d say it was above average relative to a lot of them.
Again, I’m not a huge fan of Rhianna, but don’t necessarily dislike her music either. But I think my “issue” (I don’t know if it’s really a full-blown issue), with her as the halftime performer is that she’s in this weird zone of not being old enough to fall into “legends” category (Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Eminem), but not at all a currently-hot artist (no new album in 7 years?!). She does have a newish song out (from Wakanda Forever), which I like a lot, and was hoping she’d include in her performance, but alas…
She just seemed like a strange choice. If you’re going for 21st Century performers, I’d have preferred a Harry Styles, Dua Lipa, Taylor Swift, Lizzo, Meghan Trainor, Imagine Dragons, etc. Someone who’s currently active in the music world. Rhianna seems to be more into fashion and cosmetics these days.
Hey, I just noticed something…the dancing by that shark on the left was NOT synchronized!
Well, and he was in it last year. They don’t get paid, after all, and I’m mildly surprised he did one. He didn’t even show up to collect an Oscar.
It is easy to forget how recently it was, relatively speaking, that they started having current, interesting halftime shows; as late as Super Bowl XX and a few years beyond they were sending out Up With People and the marching bands almost every year. The first really CURRENT musical act, IIRC, was New Kids On The Block in Super Bowl 25 (screw Roman numerals) and the really landmark show was Michael Jackson in Super Bowl 27; that was the one that really made people think of the Super Bowl halftime show as a major, innovative part of the spectacle. Even then not every year was REALLY big - they kept rolling out Gloria Estefan every time it was in Florida for a long while - but since Super Bowl 35 (Aerosmith and NSYNC) it’s been really top notch talent. Many of the no-doubt about it greatest acts in the history of popular music have been featured since Michael Jackson, whereas before the shows often could not honestly have been described as professional productions.
We commented on the challenge the NFL has of trying to appeal to young people, while at the same time engaging (what I presume to be) their somewhat older/more conservative primary audience.
I know who she is, and I had heard some of those songs before, but until last night, I did not know those were HER songs. The floating stages and the dancers’ energy was impressive; the music wasn’t my cup of tea.
I was the opposite. I listen to some of her music and thought the music aspect of the show was fine. I thought the spectacle aspect was ridiculous.
I could see the platforms as an entrance, but then Rihanna and some of the dancers went up and down at seemingly random times during the show. And her platform didn’t always seem 100% level, implying that the winches on both sides were not completely in-sync. I was a little nervous whenever she was high up. (I didn’t notice it with the dancers’ platforms, but as I recall the camera didn’t do close-ups on those platforms, only Rihanna’s.)
And the dancers! Creepily anonymizing costumes, and the choreography at times seemed to be an exercise in how many ridiculous positions Rihanna could put the dancers in (walk on all fours! Hands on your knees like the Charleston!) while she stood in a more-or-less dignified pose.
Maybe I should stick to listening to music in the background as I work or websurf rather than watching performances. 
I just looked at a list of all of the past halftimes.. I’m sure I am in the minority, but I think I would prefer the “themed” halftimes, albeit with lower wattage talent, than the current superstar medley spectacular.
Since I was in high school, my preference was never for stadium concerts. My persona opinion is that it is very hard for a single performer/band to successfully handle that - especially in a halftime situation.
I thought it was good. Really creative and captivating stage design, that’s for sure. Great dancing. And my mom said she was glad to see everyone was fully clothed.
Mom also said she didn’t know any of the lyrics and couldn’t understand what she was singing, but it wasn’t a problem…she probably didn’t want to know what she was saying anyway.
My nieces (11 & 13) were excited and sang along a bit.
I’m a fan of her music, and the show wasn’t too bad. It’s always a medley format, to get in as many songs as possible in a short period of time. It could have been better if there was another performer like Eminem (but he performed last year). Also, on my Roku TV the audio was a bit behind the video which was rather weird.
I guess we don’t know if she was pregnant, but we can be sure that she is not afraid of heights. I couldn’t have stood on that little platform.
All I was thinking about were the OSHA violations. Moving platforms with no side rails?
As to the performance, I couldn’t really hear her voice, it seemed buried in the audio mix. I also don’t really know any of her songs, I mean, I’ve heard of “Umbrella”, but I don’t know as I’ve ever heard it.
I must be old; the only umbrella song I can think of is Bus Stop by The Hollies (and actually that predates me).
I’m 61 and a fan of her music, went to a concert of hers in 2011 and saw her perform with Eminem in Detroit in like 2012. I also know that the song she performed last night, Diamonds, was written by the Grammy award winning artist Sia. Rihanna is a well established artist with many other endeavors including fashion. She is an excellent choice for the Super Bowl as she has a wide fan base and is well recognized.
And the show last night was damn good for what it was, a collage of hits and action. And its pretty cool that she pulled off a pregnancy reveal. She is a class act.
For an NFL halftime show I thought it was really lacking in spectacle. It’s started it out great with the platforms, interesting costumes, red/white theme… but then it never changed from there. No color changes, no lighting changes, no costume changes, no transforming sets. Just kind of stuck with the same theme throughout.
Disappointing in that respect.
Thanks. I was starting to feel like I’d wandered into the wrong thread. I didn’t see the halftime show, but I can name a fair number of her many hits and several are on my Spotify playlist. For frame of reference, I’m in my sixties.
Yeah, it is perplexing how people on this board seem to be proud of their ignorance of anything that’s super popular. I really don’t know how someone could possibly have missed hearing “Umbrella” in some form or another. It was everywhere.
You didn’t recognize ANY of the songs? That’s kind of impressive. I enjoy Rihanna’s music, but wouldn’t say I’m a fan per se. I find her music ubiquitous.
Yeah, that was the one I was surprised people haven’t heard. “All of the Lights” was everywhere for a time as well, but that’s a Kanye song where Rihanna just sang the chorus (it’s a great chorus though).
I don’t think it’s “proud” per se, as much as a push back to the notion that so and so is so famous everyone knows them. Last night’s half time show introduced me to Rhianna, so that’s a good thing. I’m not going to rush out and buy her records, but as least I’ll be able to follow along if someone says something about her to me in the future.
I know it’s always a medley, but I don’t remember the songs going by quite that quickly. I thought they usually pick fewer songs and let them play a little. I’m sure I’d prove myself wrong if I went back to watch one of the earlier ones.